Triple H is coming back on Raw SuperShow this Monday … but is he really coming back? Obviously yes, in the sense that the WWE Chief Operating Officer will physically be in Pittsburgh's Consol Energy Center after a short absence from the squared circle. But what about The Game? Will he be back – as in, will he be himself? If and when he next steps inside the ring as a competitor, can he maintain the level of competition that raised him to the status of “The King of Kings,” and strike terror into the hearts of his enemies? Simply put, when Triple H comes back, will he still be Triple H? ( PLAYLIST: MEMORABLE MONDAY NIGHT RETURNS)
The Game has, technically speaking, bounced back from injuries that may have been as serious the broken left arm and torn ligaments and tendons levied on him by Brock Lesnar two weeks earlier – two torn quadriceps come to the forefront of most people’s minds. ( WATCH: TRIPLE H INJURED) Each time, he returned stronger than ever, capturing championships, Royal Rumble Match victories and everything in between. ( WATCH: TRIPLE H WINS 2002 ROYAL RUMBLE) There is something to be said for the fact, however, that those were accidental, or at least unforeseen instances that occurred in the heat of battle. What Lesnar did was more impactful than the previous injuries because of the way the former UFC Heavyweight Champion maliciously bent The Game to his will in a way the future Hall of Famer and now COO has never experienced before (if you're curious as to just how painful Lesnar's Kimura Lock is, take it from one of the greatest fighting families of all time: it is as devastating a maneuver as there is).
It’s easy to understand the concern of some that, while Triple H may physically recover, he’ll have trouble shaking the mental aftereffects of the attack. True, he will not be himself on Raw SuperShow this Monday, but that’s because physically he can’t be. The Game won’t level Lesnar with a Pedigree or swing his sledgehammer at his attacker because a) Lesnar quit WWE last Monday and, more importantly, b) he is physically unable to do so. Triple H will have obstacles to overcome beyond the physical rehabilitation process. ( POLL: CAN TRIPLE H RECOVER?)
Mentally, he will have to overcome replaying the bone-snapping attack in his mind, the way ut has been replayed on WWE television around the globe. It’s likely the memory of Lesnar’s intentional assault will linger with him for some time, and this is the point where the aftershock is the strongest. Triple H will be at Raw SuperShow Monday, but he will be more vulnerable, in all senses of the word, than we’re used to seeing him.
That stated, this is Triple H. He has never been held down, nor has he ever been denied. Can he recover in every sense from Lesnar’s attack? Hopefully for the WWE Universe, yes.
Just not this week.